If you are a young, unmarried, person, who wants to do the bar scene, Danville is not the where they'd go (I don't count Applebee's as a bar). It's not what one would call a typical college town (very low-key). Although no road is good for driving while intoxicated, the new road has improved the travel between Richmond and Lancaster. If one lives in Richmond, and wants to pub crawl in their own backyard, instead of risking the 25 mile drive to Lex, there's definitely options in Richmond, just as good as, or better than, the bars on S. Limestone. j.s. Richmond still has a nightlife scene. Believe me, it's there. Bars, bands, etc... just hasn't been a nightlife scene on 1st street for quite awhile.
Lex may be attractive to some, but, imo, the main draw, of Lex bars vs Richmond bars, if you live in Richmond, or GC, is the ability to drink longer, or to meet up w/friends in the area. SS and her female friend, met a male friend who lives in Lex, who she and her female friend, then rode with their male friend, to the bar. SS didn't leave Richmond til 10 p.m., (bars closing soon in Richmond), so they probably didn't even get to S. Limestone, til, at the earliest, 11:00 p.m. (possible clothing change, makeup touch up, change cars, find a parking space, etc...). They hit that bar about the time things were gettin' hoppin'.
From The Other Bar, at S. Limestone, it would have been a relatively straight shot down I-75, to head home.(around 25 miles to her home, from The Other Bar). It's a relatively straight shot down 27 to GC, too. The difference in the landmarks between the routes, though, would stand out quite a bit. Even if intoxicated, things like the Fayette Mall, Brannon Crossing, RJ Corman's big train display, and such, would be fairly large signs that they were not headed toward I-75, nor Richmond, nor toward her vehicle. I've said all that to say, that I don't feel that she felt unsafe in any way, or, if so, about the time they hit the Fayette/Jessamine line, and she was on the phone w/her Mom, she'd not have hung up on her Mom, nor would they have allowed her to call her back. If they had ill intentions, that phone would never have had a chance to ping in GC.